ONE NIGHT IN MELBOURNE
by Rebel8954
Summary: Dean glowered at the two when they entered and growled, "If you haven't brought me any decent food, you can haul your asses back outta here." Seth reflects on their match in Melbourne.


**ONE NIGHT IN MELBOURNE**

' _And your winners…Dean Ambrose…Roman Reigns…Seth Rollins…_ _ **THE SHIELD!**_ _'_

Seth slowly rolled under the bottom rope and pushed himself into a sitting position with hands on the mat on either side of him. He gulped in deep breaths and tried to calm himself down. The win over The Dogs of War hadn't been an easy one.

Seth smirked to himself. Dolph Ziggler must've come up with that one. The title was too cheesy to be Drew McIntire's creation. And Braun Strowman wouldn't have given a damn. _'Idiots. They can call themselves The Dogs of War all they want. The Shield are the_ _ **real**_ _Dogs of War.'_

They'd come to the ring individually before meeting up and going through the crowd to the ring. Each had worn jet black masks shaped to resemble hounds…The Hounds of Justice. _'Those idiots came for a match. We came for a war. Wonder if those idiots will understand that Dean's changed? They're treating him like the Ambrose of two or three years ago. They just don't get it.'_

Dean **had** changed. He'd dealt with injuries before. But the injury to his arm wasn't one that could be fixed with a splash of antiseptic, gauze, and tape. And the time off allowed his chronically damaged left shoulder to finally heal up. Dean had seen the first surgery as just one more obstacle in his life to be overcome. The need for the second surgery however…

The second surgery along with the knowledge of a staph infection had left Dean more than a little depressed and questioning if he would ever be able to get back in the ring much less if he was even going to survive. Even Renee hadn't been able to bring him out of it and had finally called them, telling them she was at the end of her wits.

So, he and Roman had gotten permission from Vince, who was one of the few in the loop about Dean's medical condition, to skip a couple of house shows and fly to Birmingham. Their plan was to let Renee have some time to herself while they tag-teamed Ambrose out of his depression. But their plans changed when they got to Dean's room where the door hadn't completely closed behind someone. Through the crack they heard Renee, sweet always-optimistic Renee, verbally tearing more than a few strips off the hide of her stubborn-assed husband.

Knowing how their brother reacted to this type of confrontation, Roman tensed his shoulders, ready to storm the room when they heard Dean speak in a soft voice of apology. "I'm sorry, honey. You're right. I'll do better."

Both Seth and Roman had stared at each other with wide eyes before Seth grabbed Roman's arm and nearly dragged him down the hallway to a nearby waiting room. The two men stood staring at each other for nearly a full minute.

"Hypnosis?" Roman guessed.

Seth shook his head. "Pod person."

More silence.

"This stays totally between us," Roman said, holding out one fist.

"Completely." Seth bumped his fist against Roman's. "Not like anybody'd believe it anyway," he muttered.

The two walked back to Dean's room to find Renee sitting in a chair next to Dean's bed, holding his hand.

Dean glowered at the two when they entered and growled, "If you haven't brought me any decent food, you can haul your asses back outta here."

' _Okay, not_ _ **everything**_ _about him changed.'_ But fighting the staph infection was a battle Dean had to fight on his own. All the medications could do was give him the weapons to fight with. And that fight had changed Dean. He was less impulsive, more reflective. But he now knew the value of his own worth, and a lot of the old insecurities were gone.

When challenged about whether his brothers had even texted him while he was fighting for his life, Dean didn't bat an eye. Their enemy didn't realize they'd just handed The Shield a very nice weapon. Fortunately, their enemy didn't see the glint in Dean's eyes…the glint that was their ace in the hole…their secret weapon. The weapon that nobody would see coming until the day the fourth member of the Shield would come out to play.

Seth was aware of Dean rolling out of the ring behind him and wearily trotting around the ring to where Roman lay on the other side of a smashed barricade. Despite himself, he slowly smiled…a smile that held just a little smirk and a lot of warmth. As Dean helped Roman stand and took part of the heavier man's weight against him, Seth could read Dean's eyes.

' _Are you crazy? You coulda busted up something inside pulling that kind of a stunt! Thank you, brother.'_

As the two men reached him, Seth slid down from the apron to the floor and looped Roman's right arm over his shoulder, taking some of the weight from Dean. They heard the roar of approval from the crowd and chants of 'Shield! Shield! Shield!'.

Seth grabbed the Universal and InterContinental title from the steps where someone had placed them and clutched them close to his side. They'd fought, bled, and been hurt for those belts. He was going to make sure the enemy didn't sneak back and grab them. Halfway down the length of the ring, Roman paused and stood, removing his arms from his brothers' shoulders. Seth gave him the Universal belt and leaned back against the ring as Roman and Dean flanked him.

Dean looked at both his brothers then wrapped his right arm around Seth's head. He leaned forward and hugged him, planting a quick barely-there kiss into Seth's hair. Seth knew what Dean meant by it and momentarily closed his eyes in silent thanks.

' _The plan worked. Good job, brother. Forgiven.'_

Their enemy had tried to break apart The Shield. Instead, they'd handed The Shield the genesis of Seth's Master Plan. Even though The Shield continued to insist there were no cracks, they allowed their enemy to see what appeared to be small confrontations between the brothers over the titles. Baron Corbin, egotistical fool that he was, unknowingly allowed that plan to proceed by trying to force Dean to fight one of his brothers for their title.

Like the brothers hadn't settled any questions about titles Dean's return. Just like they'd killed the lingering anger over Seth's betrayal. Killed and buried it deep in the Nevada desert. The Shield would return united. Focused. Whole. They would sacrifice for each other. Even taking a Superman Punch supposedly delivered in error just to further their plan.

As Seth and Roman joined fists, Dean held his own fist up and pointed to it.

Seth recalled Dean's final comment about their plan. _'Let 'em say what they want to me…about me. I can take it. Nothing they've got to say means a damn thing to me.'_

Dean brought his fist down to touch Seth's and Roman's.

Phase One was complete. They'd made their statement. Phase Two was about to begin…God help the so-called Dogs of War.


End file.
